Kano Agent Backlog Skill

Kano Agent Backlog Skill (local-first)

Scope

Use this skill to:

• Plan new work by creating backlog items before code changes.
• Maintain hierarchy and relationships via parent links, as defined by the active process profile.
• Record decisions with ADRs and link them to items.
• Keep a durable, append-only worklog for project evolution.

Agent compatibility: read the whole skill

• Always load the entire SKILL.md before acting; some agent shells only fetch the first ~100 lines by default.
• If your client truncates, fetch in chunks (e.g., lines 1-200, 200-400, …) until you see the footer marker END_OF_SKILL_SENTINEL.
• If you cannot confirm the footer marker, stop and ask for help; do not proceed with partial rules.
• When generating per-agent guides, preserve this read-all requirement so downstream agents stay in sync.

Non-negotiables

• Planning before coding: create/update items and meet the Ready gate before making code changes.
• Worklog is append-only; never rewrite history.
• Update Worklog whenever:
  • a discussion produces a clear decision or direction,
  • an item state changes,
  • scope/approach changes,
  • or an ADR is created/linked.
• Archive by view: hide Done/Dropped items in views by default; do not move files unless explicitly requested.
• Backlog volume control:
  • Only create items for work that changes code or design decisions.
  • Avoid new items for exploratory discussion; record in existing Worklog instead.
  • Keep Tasks/Bugs sized for a single focused session.
  • Avoid ADRs unless a real architectural trade-off is made.
• Ticketing threshold (agent-decided):
  • Open a new Task/Bug when you will change code/docs/views/scripts.
  • Open an ADR (and link it) when a real trade-off or direction change is decided.
  • Otherwise, record the discussion in an existing Worklog; ask if unsure.
• Ticket type selection (keep it lightweight):
  • Epic: multi-release or multi-team milestone spanning multiple Features.
  • Feature: a new capability that delivers multiple UserStories.
  • UserStory: a single user-facing outcome that requires multiple Tasks.
  • Task: a single focused implementation or doc change (typically one session).
  • Example: "End-to-end embedding pipeline" = Epic; "Pluggable vector backend" = Feature; "MVP chunking pipeline" = UserStory; "Implement tokenizer adapter" = Task.
• Bug vs Task triage (when fixing behavior):
  • If you are correcting a behavior that was previously marked Done and the behavior violates the original intent/acceptance (defect or regression), open a Bug and link it to the original item.
  • If the change is a new requirement/scope change beyond the original acceptance, open a Task/UserStory (or Feature) instead, and link it for traceability.
• Bug origin tracing (when diagnosing a defect/regression):
  • Record when the issue started and the evidence path you used to determine it.
  • Prefer VCS-backed evidence when available:
    • last-known-good revision (commit hash or tag)
    • first-known-bad revision (commit hash or tag)
    • suspected introducing change(s) (commit hash) and why (e.g., git blame on specific lines)
  • If git history is unavailable (zip export, shallow clone, missing remote), explicitly record that limitation and what alternative evidence you used (e.g., release notes, timestamps, reproduction reports).
  • Keep evidence lightweight: record commit hashes + 1–2 line summaries; avoid pasting large diffs into Worklog. Attach artifacts when needed.
  • Suggested Worklog template:
    • Bug origin: last_good=<sha|tag>, first_bad=<sha|tag>, suspect=<sha> (reason: blame <path>:<line>), evidence=<git log/blame/bisect|other>
• State ownership: the agent decides when to move items to InProgress or Done; humans observe and can add context.
• State semantics: Proposed = needs discovery/confirmation; Planned = approved but not started; Ready gate applies before start.
• Hierarchy is in frontmatter links, not folder nesting; avoid moving files to reflect scope changes.
• Filenames stay stable; use ASCII slugs.
• Never include secrets in backlog files or logs.
• Language: backlog and documentation content must be English-only (no CJK), to keep parsing and cross-agent collaboration deterministic.
• Agent Identity: In Worklog and audit logs, use your own identity (e.g., [agent=antigravity]), never copy [agent=codex] blindly.
• Always provide an explicit --agent value for auditability (some commands currently default to cli, but do not rely on it).
• Model attribution (optional but preferred): provide --model <name> (or env KANO_AGENT_MODEL / KANO_MODEL) when it is known deterministically.
  • Do not guess model names; if unknown, omit the [model=...] segment.
• Agent Identity Protocol: Supply --agent <ID> with your real product name (e.g., cursor, copilot, windsurf, antigravity).
  • Forbidden (Placeholders): auto, user, assistant, <AGENT_NAME>, $AGENT_NAME.
• File operations for backlog/skill artifacts must go through the kano-backlog CLI (python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog <command>) so audit logs capture the action.
• Skill scripts only operate on paths under _kano/backlog/ or _kano/backlog_sandbox/; refuse other paths.
• After modifying backlog items, refresh the plain Markdown views immediately using python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog view refresh --agent <agent-id> --backlog-root <path> so the dashboards stay current.
  • Persona summaries/reports are available via python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog admin persona summary|report ....
• python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog workitem update-state ... auto-syncs parent states forward-only by default; use --no-sync-parent for manual re-plans where parent state should stay put.
• Add Obsidian [[wikilink]] references in the body (e.g., a ## Links section) so Graph/backlinks work; frontmatter alone does not create graph edges.

Agent compatibility: read the whole skill

• Always load the entire SKILL.md before acting; some agent shells only fetch the first ~100 lines by default.
• If your client truncates, fetch in chunks (e.g., lines 1-200, 200-400, …) until you see the footer marker END_OF_SKILL_SENTINEL.
• If you cannot confirm the footer marker, stop and ask for help; do not proceed with partial rules.
• When generating per-agent guides, preserve this read-all requirement so downstream agents stay in sync.

First-run bootstrap (prereqs + initialization)

Before using this skill in a repo, the agent must confirm:

1. Python prerequisites are available (or install them), and
2. the backlog scaffold exists for the target product/root.

If the backlog structure is missing, propose the bootstrap commands and wait for user approval before writing files.

Developer vs user mode (where to declare it)

• Preferred source of truth: product config in _kano/backlog/products/<product>/_config/config.json.
  • mode.skill_developer: true when this repo actively develops the skill itself (this demo repo).
  • mode.persona: optional string describing the primary human persona (e.g. developer, pm, qa), used only for human-facing summaries/views.
• Secondary: agent guide files (e.g., AGENTS.md / CLAUDE.md) can document expectations, but are agent-specific and not script-readable.

Skill developer gate (architecture compliance)

If mode.skill_developer=true, before writing any skill code (in scripts/ or src/), you must:

1. Read ADR-0013 ("Codebase Architecture and Module Boundaries") in the product decisions folder.
2. Follow the folder rules defined in ADR-0013:
   • scripts/ is executable-only: no reusable module code.
   • src/ is import-only: core logic lives here, never executed directly.
   • All agent-callable operations go through scripts/kano-backlog CLI.
3. Place new code in the correct package:
   • Models/config/errors → src/kano_backlog_core/
   • Use-cases (create/update/view) → src/kano_backlog_ops/
   • Storage backends → src/kano_backlog_adapters/
   • CLI commands → src/kano_backlog_cli/commands/

Violating these boundaries will be flagged in code review.

Prerequisite install (Python)

Detect:

• Run python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog doctor --format plain.

If packages are missing, install once (recommended):

• Default: python -m pip install -e skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill
• Skill contributors: python -m pip install -e skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill[dev]
• Optional heavy dependencies (FAISS, sentence-transformers) should be installed manually per platform requirements before running the CLI against embedding features.

Backlog initialization (file scaffold + config + dashboards)

Detect (multi-product / platform layout):

• Product initialized if _kano/backlog/products/<product>/_config/config.json exists (or confirm via python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog doctor --product <product>).

Bootstrap:

• Run python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog admin init --product <product> --agent <agent-id> [--backlog-root <path>] to scaffold _kano/backlog/products/<product>/ (items/, decisions/, views/, _config/, _meta/, _index/).
• The init command derives a project prefix, writes _config/config.json, and refreshes dashboards so views exist immediately after initialization.
• Manual fallback (only if automation is unavailable): follow _kano/backlog/README.md to copy the template scaffold, then refresh views via kano-backlog view refresh.

Optional LLM analysis over deterministic reports

This skill can optionally append an LLM-generated analysis to a deterministic report. The deterministic report is the SSOT; analysis is treated as a derived artifact.

• Deterministic report: views/Report_<persona>.md
• Derived LLM output: views/_analysis/Report_<persona>_LLM.md (gitignored by default)
• Deterministic prompt artifact: views/_analysis/Report_<persona>_analysis_prompt.md

Enable by config (per product):

• analysis.llm.enabled = true

Execution:

• The default workflow is: generate the deterministic report → use it as SSOT → fill in the analysis template.
  • The skill generates a deterministic prompt file to guide the analysis, and a derived markdown file with placeholder headings.
• Optional automation: when analysis.llm.enabled = true in config, view refresh generates views/snapshots/_analysis/Report_<persona>_analysis_prompt.md (deterministic prompt) and Report_<persona>_LLM.md (template or LLM output)
• Never pass API keys as CLI args; keep secrets in env vars to avoid leaking into audit logs.

ID prefix derivation

• Source of truth:
  • Product config: _kano/backlog/products/<product>/_config/config.toml (product.name, product.prefix), or
  • Repo config (single-product): _kano/backlog/_config/config.toml (product.name, product.prefix).
• Derivation:
  • Split product.name on non-alphanumeric separators and camel-case boundaries.
  • Take the first letter of each segment.
  • If only one letter, take the first letter plus the next consonant (A/E/I/O/U skipped).
  • If still short, use the first two letters.
  • Uppercase the result.
• Example: product.name=kano-agent-backlog-skill-demo -> KABSD.

Recommended layout

This skill supports both single-product and multi-product layouts:

• Single-product (repo-level): _kano/backlog/
• Multi-product (monorepo): _kano/backlog/products/<product>/

Within each backlog root:

• _meta/ (schema, conventions)
• items/<type>/<bucket>/ (work items)
• decisions/ (ADR files)
• views/ (dashboards / generated Markdown)

Item bucket folders (per 100)

• Store items under _kano/backlog/items/<type>/<bucket>/.
• Bucket names use 4 digits for the lower bound of each 100 range.
  • Example: 0000, 0100, 0200, 0300, ...
• Example path:
  • _kano/backlog/items/task/0000/KABSD-TSK-0007_define-secret-provider-validation.md

Index/MOC files

• For Epic, create an adjacent index file:
  • <ID>_<slug>.index.md
• Index files should render a tree using Dataview/DataviewJS and rely on parent links.
• Track epic index files in _kano/backlog/_meta/indexes.md (type, item_id, index_file, updated, notes).

References

• Reference index: REFERENCE.md
• Schema and rules: references/schema.md
• Templates: references/templates.md
• Workflow SOP: references/workflow.md
• View patterns: references/views.md
• Obsidian Bases (plugin-free): references/bases.md
• Context Graph + Graph-assisted retrieval: references/context_graph.md

If the backlog structure is missing, propose creation and wait for user approval before writing files.

Kano CLI entrypoints (current surface)

scripts/ exposes a single executable: scripts/kano-backlog. The CLI is intentionally organized as nested command groups so agents can discover operations via --help on-demand (instead of hard-coding the full command surface into this skill).

Help-driven discovery (preferred)

Run these in order, expanding only what you need:

• python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog --help
  • Shows top-level groups (e.g., backlog, item, state, worklog, view) and global options.
• python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog <group> --help
  • Shows subcommands for that group.
• python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog <group> <command> --help
  • Shows required args/options for that command.

Guideline: do not paste large --help output into chat; inspect it locally and run the command.

Canonical examples (keep these few memorized)

• Bootstrap:
  • python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog doctor --format plain
  • python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog admin init --product <name> --agent <id>
• Daily workflow:
  • python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog workitem create --type task --title "..." --agent <id> --product <name>
  • python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog workitem set-ready <item-id> --context "..." --goal "..." --approach "..." --acceptance-criteria "..." --risks "..." --product <name>
  • python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog workitem validate <item-id> --product <name>
  • python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog workitem update-state <item-ref> --state InProgress --agent <id> --message "..." --product <name>
  • python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog workitem attach-artifact <item-id> --path <file> --shared --agent <id> --product <name> [--note "..."]
  • python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog view refresh --agent <id> --product <name>
• Backlog integrity checks:
  • python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog admin validate uids --product <name>

Conflict handling policy (configurable)

Use product config to control how duplicate IDs and UIDs are handled by maintenance commands such as admin links normalize-ids.

• Config keys (product _config/config.toml):
  • conflict_policy.id_conflict: default rename (rename duplicate IDs).
  • conflict_policy.uid_conflict: default trash_shorter (move shorter duplicate content to _trash/).
• trash_shorter uses _trash/<YYYYMMDD>/... under the product root; items get a Worklog entry.

Sandbox workflow (isolated experimentation)

For testing, prototyping, or demos without affecting production backlog:

• Create: python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog admin sandbox init <sandbox-name> --product <source-product> --agent <id>
• Use: python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog workitem create --product <sandbox-name> ... (same CLI, different product)
• Cleanup: rm -rf _kano/backlog_sandbox/<sandbox-name> (git will ignore this directory)
• Rationale: Sandboxes mirror production structure but live in _kano/backlog_sandbox/, so changes never leak into _kano/backlog/.

Artifacts policy (local-first)

• Storage locations:
  • Shared across products: _kano/backlog/_shared/artifacts/<ITEM_ID>/ (use --shared).
  • Product-local: _kano/backlog/products/<product>/artifacts/<ITEM_ID>/ (use --no-shared).
• Usage:
  • Attach via workitem attach-artifact — copies the file and appends a Worklog link.
  • Prefer lightweight, text-first artifacts (Markdown, Mermaid, small images). Use Git LFS for large binaries if needed.
• Git policy:
  • Commit human-readable artifacts that aid review. Avoid committing generated binaries unless justified.
  • Sandboxes under _kano/backlog_sandbox/ are gitignored; artifacts there are ephemeral.
  • For derived analysis, store under views/_analysis/ (gitignored by default), and keep deterministic reports in views/.
• Linking:
  • The CLI appends a Markdown link relative to the item file. Optionally add a ## Links section for richer context.

State update helper

• Use python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog workitem update-state ... to update state + append Worklog.
• Prefer --action on kano-backlog state transition for the common transitions (start, ready, review, done, block, drop).
• Use python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog workitem validate <item-id> to check the Ready gate explicitly.

Topic and Workset workflow (context management)

When to use Topics

Topics are shareable context buffers for multi-step work that spans multiple work items or requires exploratory research before creating formal backlog items.

Use Topics when:

• Exploring a complex problem that may result in multiple work items
• Collecting code snippets, logs, and materials across multiple sessions
• Collaborating across agents/sessions with a shared context
• Refactoring work that requires tracking multiple code locations

Topic lifecycle:

1. Create: python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog topic create <topic-name> --agent <id>
   • Creates _kano/backlog/topics/<topic>/ with manifest.json, brief.md, brief.generated.md, notes.md, and materials/ subdirectories
2. Collect materials:
   • Add items: topic add <topic-name> --item <ITEM_ID>
   • Add code snippets: topic add-snippet <topic-name> --file <path> --start <line> --end <line> --agent <id>
   • Pin docs: topic pin <topic-name> --doc <path>
3. Distill: python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog topic distill <topic-name>

• Generates/overwrites deterministic brief.generated.md from collected materials
• brief.md is a stable, human-maintained brief (do not overwrite it automatically)

4. Switch context: python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog topic switch <topic-name> --agent <id>
   • Sets active topic (affects config overlays and workset behavior)
5. Close: python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog topic close <topic-name> --agent <id>
   • Marks topic as closed; eligible for TTL cleanup
6. Cleanup: python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog topic cleanup --ttl-days <N> [--dry-run]
   • Removes raw materials from closed topics older than TTL

Topic snapshots (retention policy):

• Snapshots are intended for milestone checkpoints (pre-merge/split/restore, risky bulk edits), not every small edit.
• To prevent noise, keep only the latest snapshot per topic in this demo repo.
• After creating a snapshot (or periodically), prune all but the newest snapshot:
  • python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog topic snapshot cleanup <topic-name> --ttl-days 0 --keep-latest 1 --apply

Topic structure:

_kano/backlog/topics/<topic>/
  manifest.json          # refs to items/docs/snippets, status, timestamps
  brief.md               # stable, human-maintained brief (do not overwrite automatically)
  brief.generated.md     # deterministic distilled brief (generated/overwritten by `topic distill`)
  notes.md               # freeform notes (backward compat)
  materials/             # raw collection (gitignored by default)
    clips/               # code snippet refs + cached text
    links/               # urls / notes
    extracts/            # extracted paragraphs
    logs/                # build logs / command outputs
  synthesis/             # intermediate drafts
  publish/               # prepared write-backs (patches/ADRs)
  config.toml            # optional topic-specific config overrides

When to use Worksets

Worksets are per-item working directories (cached, derived data) for a single backlog item.

Use Worksets when:

• Starting work on a specific Task/Bug/UserStory
• Need scratch space for deliverables (patches, test artifacts, etc.)
• Want item-specific config overrides (rare)

Workset lifecycle:

1. Initialize: python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog workset init <ITEM_ID> --agent <id> [--ttl-hours <N>]
   • Creates _kano/backlog/.cache/worksets/items/<ITEM_ID>/ with meta.json, plan.md, notes.md, deliverables/
2. Work: Store scratch files in deliverables/ (patches, test outputs, etc.)
3. Refresh: python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog workset refresh <ITEM_ID> --agent <id>
   • Updates refreshed_at timestamp
4. Cleanup: python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog workset cleanup --ttl-hours <N> [--dry-run]
   • Removes stale worksets older than TTL

Workset structure:

_kano/backlog/.cache/worksets/items/<ITEM_ID>/
  meta.json              # workset metadata (item_id, agent, timestamps, ttl)
  plan.md                # execution plan template
  notes.md               # work notes with Decision: marker guidance
  deliverables/          # scratch outputs (patches, logs, test artifacts)
  config.toml            # optional item-specific config overrides

Topic vs Workset decision guide

Best practice: Start exploration in a Topic, create work items as scope clarifies, then use Worksets for individual item execution.

Active topic and config overlays

• Active topic is per-agent: _kano/backlog/.cache/worksets/active_topic.<agent>.txt
• When an agent has an active topic, config resolution includes topic overrides:
  • Layer order: defaults → product → topic → workset → runtime
  • Topic config: _kano/backlog/topics/<topic>/config.toml
  • Use for temporary overrides (e.g., switch default_product during exploration)
• Get active topic: python skills/kano-agent-backlog-skill/scripts/kano-backlog topic show --agent <id>

Materials buffer (Topic-specific)

• Reference-first snippet collection: Avoid large copy-paste; store file+line+hash+optional snapshot
• Snippet refs include:
  • file: relative path from workspace root
  • lines: [start, end] (1-based inclusive)
  • hash: sha256:... of content for staleness check
  • cached_text: optional snapshot (use --snapshot to include)
  • revision: git commit hash if available

Human decision materials vs. machine manifest

Dual-Readability Design: Every artifact checks against both human and agent readability:

• Human-Readable: High-level summaries, clear checklists, "manager-friendly" reports for rapid decision-making
• Agent-Readable: Structural precision, file paths, line numbers, explicit markers for action without hallucination

Implementation in Topics:

• Treat manifest.json as machine-oriented metadata:
  • seed_items: UUID list for precise agent reference
  • snippet_refs: file+line+hash for deterministic loading
  • pinned_docs: absolute paths for unambiguous reference
• Keep brief.generated.md deterministic and tool-owned (generated/overwritten by topic distill):
  • Readable item titles (e.g., "KABSD-TSK-0042: Implement tokenizer adapter")
  • If available, include item path and keep UID in a hidden HTML comment for deterministic mapping
  • Materials index with items/docs/snippets sorted for repeatability
• Keep brief.md human-oriented and stable (do not overwrite automatically):
  • Context summary and key decisions
  • Optional: include a human-friendly materials list (do not duplicate raw snippet text)
• Put human-facing decision support in _kano/backlog/topics/<topic>/notes.md (and/or pinned docs), e.g.:
  • Decision to make
  • Options + trade-offs
  • Evidence (ADR links, snippet refs, benchmark/log artifacts)
  • Recommendation + follow-ups
• Staleness detection: Compare current file hash with stored hash to detect if code changed
• Distillation: topic distill generates deterministic brief.generated.md with a repeatable materials index

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